Celtic Women

Author and Celtic historian Peter Berresford Ellis chronicles the role of Celtic Women in his book, Celtic Women, Women in Celtic Society and Literature. There are many examples in the book of law and customs in other Celtic regions besides Ireland. But it is in Ireland where much more is known because of the Brehon Laws. 

In referring to the Isle of Man, he notes that even though ecclesiastical law existed, which put more restrictions in general on women, the main law of the land was “The Breast Law,” which allowed women equal property rights when separating from their husbands even if they had been convicted of crimes. Truly women’s rights were acknowledged and protected in Celtic society.

In contrast, women in Rome and Greece were not afforded many rights. In Greece in particular they were separated from men and not allowed to leave their living quarters. While Roman women were permitted more freedom, they too had no authority when it came to business matters.

Fortunately, times have changed, and even in the church women today hold positions of authority and respect. But what is now a modern standard has been long adhered to by the Celts. All people, all living beings, are of God.  This is not to say that women were always treated well; we cannot say that even today. But in the ancient world Celtic women fared much better than in the rest of western civilization.

Monasterboice

When planning our trip to Ireland, I knew that Newgrange would be on our way to Northern Ireland after we left Dublin. So would Monasterboice. I had seen the Monasterboice Muirdach's Cross with its Biblical carvings, located in County Lough,  pictured in many books. I wrote about it on page 73 of Celtic Wisdom. I thought it would be easy to find. It was famous!

But this was our first day in Ireland and we were not yet accustomed to road signs and roundabouts and had little sleep on the overnight flight from the states. We drove in circles and finally decided to stop and ask directions--or maybe get a map. The towns are so small and so close together on the main road. When Tom asked, a clerk in the store said, "I don't know. Why don't you ask them in Monasterboice?"

Truly, this was our only rude encounter during our visit, but it was the first day! They were out of maps. If we had come during tourist season, we might have been able to follow a tour bus. As we started circling around again, I realized I was reading the road signs incorrectly and we finally found our way. We had to go down a wee country lane, but soon found the parking lot and jumped out of the rental car just as another car with two people in it did the same. They apparently weren't tourists, and they knew we were as soon as we spoke. The girl who had been driving advised us to stick our bags in our trunk (boot, as they call it) because there had been a lot of robberies in the area. Really? There didn't seem to be any people about and almost no traffic. We did and noticed a sign as we left the parking lot advising the same thing. So, that was a kind turn even if the fellow in the store had been rude.

The West Cross

The monastery ruins, the crosses, and even the grave stones, rewarded us with their beauty, size, and incredible age. If Newgrange had intrigued and amazed me just hours earlier, Monasterboice charmed me.

I wished I had visited this site before going. It explains what's there (with a map) much better than I can, so I'll share the link instead of rehashing it. One reason I didn't want to miss seeing this site is because it's one of the oldest monasteries in Ireland. The founder, St. Buite, lived early in the 6th century.

The North Cross

Tomorrow's Winter Solstice

Tomorrow morning (where I live) a unique occurrence in the heavens will take place. It's the first time in 372 years that a lunar eclipse will coincide with the winter solstice. The moon is supposed to be high in the sky because of where it is located at the solstice, making viewing the eerily glowing moon easier--if, that is, there are no clouds to block it.

Where I live the eclipse will take place between 1:30 and 2:40AM, so I'm not likely to see it. How about you???

Be sure to come back tomorrow when I'll be blogging about the winter solstice in Newgrange in Ireland.

St. Fingar and St. Piala

Today is the feast day of brother and sister Fingar and Piala. Never heard of them? Me either until I read a short entry in The Celtic Year by Shirley Toulson. I did a little Internet searching and discovered only a bit more.

Their story takes place in the middle of the 5th century. Fingar was from a royal family, the son of a king name Clito who drove him out, along with many others including Piala, because St. Patrick had converted them to Christianity. They went to Cornwall. One account says there were over seven hundred people who went. However, they were not well received. King Theodoric, a pagan king, ordered them all killed. So, Fingar and his sister were early Irish Christian martyrs.

It's often been noted, and I've written about it myself, that Ireland was converted with no bloodshed. It's true that there were no holy wars, nothing like The Crusades, and the people came to the faith because it melded so easily with what they already believed. But obviously people did die for their religious beliefs.

Fingar had a monastery named for him at Gwinear, near Hayle, the place of this massacre. Gwinear is the Welsh name for Fingar. As was common in the Middle Ages, a biography of this saint was written by his church (pictured above.) Many miracles were then assigned to the saint, of course--restoring a cow that was slaughtered to feed him and his companions, sticking a staff into the ground from whence came a fountain of water...but for me the thing to remember about Fingar and Piala and so many, many ancient Irish Christians is that they gave up their way of life, their homeland, and sometimes their families, to embrace the Christian faith.

This is still happening in some parts of the world. I don't know about you, but my life suddenly seems very easy.